London Calling
by niceandeasy
Summary: AU. A gold medal isn't all Peeta Mellark wants to win in London. Can he win gold and Katniss Everdeen's heart?
1. Chapter 1

July 23, 2012

"One, two, three!"

Katniss Everdeen smiled at the camera her best friend Madge Undersee was holding, trying not to grimace at the bright flash. "Looks great!" Madge chirped after she took the picture, looking appreciatively at the screen.

"Great. Now can we _please_ get out of here? I'm freaking hungry."

Katniss smiled at the sound of her friend Johanna Mason's voice. A spitfire of a girl, Johanna always had something to say (although it was generally negative).

"Alright princess, let's get you out of here," Clove Kubrick declared sarcastically. Johanna smacked her upside the head as Annie Cresta laughed at their antics.

"Come on. I'm sick of listening to you all complain," Katniss said, trying to keep the slight exasperation out of her voice. "Hypocrite," Madge teased, poking Katniss' side. Katniss poked Madge right back, shaking her head as they caught up with the rest of their friends.

"Where is the damn cafeteria in this Village? I swear it wasn't this hard to find something to eat in San Jose."

"Is food all you think about Jo?" Annie joked.

"Hey! As an athlete, it is vitally important to keep healthy...and my body likes to keep healthy by eating!"

Katniss snorted at Johanna's comment, but she also knew that her friend was right. All five girls needed to be in absolute top physical condition as elite gymnasts.

"That's gonna be pretty hard to do if we can't find the place!" Clove said.

"Oh will you all just shut it?" Annie said. "We really won't find it if we keep arguing."

After fifteen more minutes of searching the village, Johanna came upon a narrow door marked "kitchen" in bright white letters.

"Look guys! Maybe this is a back entrance!"

"I don't know, Jo," said Clove. "I think this is where the cooks are supposed to enter."

"Well then let's go in! I'm sure they'd be more than happy to lead us to where we're supposed to go."

"Let's not be rash," Madge started.

"I'm hungry!" Johanna whined. "I don't care about the consequences-I'm going in."

"I don't think so," Clove said, pulling on Johanna's sleeve before she could open the door.

"Look, the front entrance has to be around here somewhere. Let's just look around a little more, I'm sure we'll find it."

Madge's proposition was met with an very unsatisfied glare from Johanna.

"Get real, Madge. I'm not wasting anymore of my precious time looking for a door that we're never going to find."

Before Madge could reply, their conversation was interrupted by a voice from across the street.

"You girls lost?"

All five of the girls whipped around to find the person who had called out to them. They found three incredibly tall men, all of whom were wearing identical gray jackets.

Johanna decided to take initiative, as usual. "Yeah. You wouldn't happen to know where the cafeteria is, would you?"

The man smirked. "Sure would. We're headed there too."

He crossed the deserted street, closely flanked by the other two men. When they reached the girls, he held his hand out to Johanna.

"Finnick Odair. It's my pleasure," he purred. Johanna just frowned and ripped her hand away from his.

"_Your_ pleasure," she muttered.

"This is-"

"We know who you are!" Annie squeaked. "Finnick Odair, Gale Hawthorne and Peeta Mellark-the USA swimming dream team!"

Everyone was silent at Annie's words. Quiet, mild mannered Annie was never one to speak up, and her friends were shocked.

"Right," Madge said, attempting to break the tense silence.

"You're the gymnastics team, right?" Peeta asked.

"Yep!" Clove answered proudly. "I'm Clove Kubrick."

Madge took Clove's words as a cue to introduce herself as well.

"Madge Undersee," she said.

"Annie Cresta," Annie spoke quietly, still slightly embarrassed about her uncharacteristic outburst.

"Johanna Mason." Johanna kept her tone slightly clipped, still just wanting to get to the cafeteria.

"Katniss Everdeen," Katniss said.

"_Catnip_? What a weird name!" Gale laughed.

"It's _~Katniss_," she replied, scowling. Gale threw an arm around her shoulder, still laughing. "Whatever you say Catnip."

"Katniss!"

Rolling his eyes, Peeta spoke up. "It's nice to meet you all," he said, looking at each of the girls, his eyes lingering on Katniss for just a moment longer than the others.

"You too," Madge piped up.

"Well, it was just _smashing_ to run into you guys, but if you'll excuse us, we've got to find some food now."

"Ah. Of course. Let's get these lovely ladies to the fabulous cafeteria, conveniently located in the village!"

"Or Olympic Jail Cell, take your pick," Johanna grumbled.

Finnick quickly led the girls to a large glass door that held the largest assortment of food Katniss had ever seen at one time.

"Sweet!"

Johanna was the first one of the group to take her place in line, excitedly grabbing herself a large place as she did so.

"Damn, Gale," Peeta said. "She's more excited to eat than you. That's impressive."

Gale playfully punched Peeta on the shoulder and walked over to the lunch line, standing behind Johanna.

Finnick, Peeta and the rest of the girls followed after him, Finnick in the front and Peeta bringing up the rear.

"Need a plate, Katniss?"

Peeta's voice made Katniss jump. He laughed at her reaction as he held out one of the plates for her.

"Sorry I scared you," he said.

Katniss smiled. "It's okay, Mellark."

"Mellark?" Peeta asked.

"That is your name, correct?"

"Yes."

"Okay then, Mellark."

"What made you think we were strictly on a last-name basis?"

"What made you think we were strictly on a first-name basis?"

"We're friends."

"Are we really? I don't even know you," Katniss pointed out.

"I'm hurt," Peeta said, pretending to look concerned and placing a hand over his heart.

Katniss just rolled her eyes. "I know who you are. I just meant I don't really _really_ know you."

"Of course you know me. Five golds in Beijing haven't made me a stranger to the press you know."

"Oh, I know. You three," she said, pointing to Finnick, Gale and Peeta, "are all the media seems to talk about anymore."

"Do I detect a hint of jealousy in your tone, Katniss?"

Katniss glared at him. "Absolutely not," she said, turning around quickly, her back a little straighter and her head a little higher than it had been moments ago.

_Who do these guys think they are? _Katniss thought. _They should be thankful they made the team, not like they just _deserve _to be here._

_Good one, Mellark, _Peeta thought. _That's the way to get a girl to like you. Look like an asshole. _

He sighed. Peeta knew that the last thing that he needed was to get distracted by a girl right now, but he couldn't help it. Katniss Everdeen was absolutely stunning.

Being a professional athlete meant Peeta had been fortunate enough to be exposed to some of the most beautiful women in the world due to his social status. However, not one of them was as pretty as Katniss was, with her long dark braid, high cheekbones, plump lips, and gorgeous gray eyes-

"Peeta!"

Now it was his turn to jump.

"What?"

"Are you alright? I've asked you the same question three times now and all you've done is stare at me."

He flushed in embarrassment at Katniss' words.

"I'm fine," he muttered. Katniss just smirked, turning around again to pick out her meal.

Peeta quickly chose his lunch and followed behind Katniss to the large table Finnick was leading their group to. He saw that two of their other friends, Thresh and Cato, were already there.

"Girls, I'd like you to meet our friends Thresh Granger and Cato Stone."

Both of them nodded to the girls as a greeting, silently welcoming them to the table.

Everyone quickly sat down the boys all lined up on one side of the table and the girls on the other. They all began to make pleasant small talk, especially Katniss and Gale.

Peeta frowned slightly at the laughing pair to his right. Gale was his friend, but he also had a reputation of being a player, and Peeta didn't want to see him hurt her.

"So! What're you girls here for?" Cato asked loudly.

"Gymnastics," Katniss answered shortly.

"Fascinating," Cato replied, smirking as he focused his gaze on Katniss. "What's your event, gorgeous?"

Katniss narrowed her eyes at Cato before answering. "Floor. Although I don't see why you're so interested."

Peeta had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Katniss had some spunk.

"Relax, sweets. Just giving you a bad time," Cato laughed. Katniss's glare softened, but she made a point to avoid speaking to him for the remainder of their lunch break.

Everyone finished eating fairly quickly, and Peeta realized that if he was going to ever really see Katniss again, he needed to talk to her now.

_Come on, _he thought. _Do it now, before you lose the nerve. _

Clearing his throat, Peeta tapped Katniss on the shoulder.

"Uh, Katniss? Can I talk to you?" He winced slightly as his voice cracked.

She turned around to face Peeta, her eyes curious.

"Okay."

He sighed and said, "Look, I'm sorry about what went down between us earlier. I didn't mean to act like such a jerk. Maybe we could start over?"

Peeta watched Katniss apprehensively after he spoke, dying to know what she was thinking. He wanted to get to know her so badly, and he didn't know if she would be willing to let him.

"Okay," she repeated. Peeta let out a soft sigh of relief. He smiled and held out his hand. "I'm Peeta Mellark. Nice to meet you."

Katniss couldn't stop the small grin that appeared on her face. "Katniss Everdeen. Nice to meet you, too."

"Would you be interested in...meeting up sometime?"

"I'm swamped with practice for the next couple of days..." Katniss said.

"How about you find me during the Opening Ceremonies?" Peeta suggested hopefully.

"I thought swimmers couldn't make it?" she asked.

"I don't have a race until Sunday," he explained. "Besides, I love the experience. There's nothing like it."

Katniss smiled. "I'll see you Friday, Peeta," she said, getting up and finding her friends on the other side of the cafeteria.

_I can't _wait _for Friday._


	2. Chapter 2

July 27, 2012

"The United States of America!"

Raucous cheers from supporters of Team USA filled the Olympic Stadium. Peeta beamed up at the crowd, waving his arms up at them, appreciating their cheers. He was so busy watching the screaming fans that he didn't notice where he was walking and ran straight into the girl in front of him.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" he quickly apologized. The girl looked back at him over her shoulder.

"It's alright. Wait...Peeta?"

"Katniss?"

She smiled slightly at her new friend and he quickened his pace a bit so he could walk next to her.

"How are you?" she asked loudly, trying to make herself heard over the roar of the crowd.

"I'm doing well. You?"

"Fine, thanks."

"This wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I suggested we meet," Peeta joked.

Katniss smiled sheepishly. "Sorry I didn't meet up with you sooner. Clove insisted that I wear my hair down-she said it would 'totally clash with this beret if you keep it in a braid.'" She rolled her eyes at Clove's words, and Peeta laughed.

"It's no problem. You look great. Beautiful, actually," he told her honestly.

She turned a light shade of pink. "Thank you. Although, I think it's pretty hard for anyone to look beautiful in this," she said, lifting up her leg slightly to show him the solid white tennis shoes that clashed slightly with her blue blazer and tea-length skirt.

"You can pull it off," Peeta told her with a wink.

Katniss blushed and looked down at her feet, a small smile on her face.

"Hey guys!"

Madge's chipper voice interrupted their conversation.

"Hey Madge," Peeta greeted her.

"Hi," Katniss said.

"Isn't this just _amazing_? The Parade of Nations was always my favorite part of the ceremony, and now we're in it!" Madge gushed. Her eyes were bright with excitement and her face was glowing with happiness.

Her mood seemed to rub off slightly on Katniss. "Isn't it, though? I can't even begin to describe this...it's beyond anything I could have imagined."

"Right?" Madge replied, smile growing brighter. "Let's get some pictures!"

Katniss and Peeta agreed (although Katniss did so rather reluctantly), and Madge proceeded to snap their photo.

"Perfect," she said, looking at the image on her camera.

"What a night, eh?"

Johanna wrapped her arms around Katniss and Madge's shoulders as she spoke. "You and the rest of the guys should meet us at The Globe tonight," she said to Peeta. "We'll show you how _real _athletes party."

Peeta laughed. "Thresh and Cato have races tomorrow morning, but I'd be willing to bet Gale and Finn will want to come."

"Great! See you there," Johanna said, turning around with her two friends, scampering off to find Annie and Clove.

"Peeta!"

At the sound of his name, Peeta whipped around. "Finnick. I was just looking for you. Where are the rest of the guys?"

"Gale's up ahead of us and the other two are probably knocked out, resting up for their races. Why?"

Peeta grinned. "You wanna go have some fun?"

* * *

"Jo! I can't believe you did that!" Katniss said as they were leaving the stadium.

Katniss' exasperated voice just made Johanna laugh. "Live a little, Kitty Kat. It'll be fun! Besides, Peeta will be there. Maybe he could help you...loosen up a little."

Katniss nudged Johanna in the ribs, slightly embarrassed at her words.

"I don't need any help 'loosening up,' thanks. And even if I did, he wouldn't...it's not like that. We're barely friends."

"Seems like he's got a little more than friendship on his mind," Madge giggled.

"I told you...he doesn't like me," Katniss insisted.

"That's what _you _think," Johanna said, laughing with Madge.

Katniss knew her friends were teasing her, but she wondered if there was some truth to their words. Peeta seemed like a nice guy and had been polite to her and her friends, but Katniss didn't think that he wanted to be anything more than friends.

_He _did _say you looked beautiful..._

She sighed._ I shouldn't be thinking about something as trivial as boys, _Katniss told herself._ Now is the time to focus. _

"Hey," Johanna said, snapping Katniss out of her thoughts. When she turned to look at her friend, she saw that Johanna was on the phone.

"Annie! Don't _worry_ about what you're going to wear! Text Finnick and tell them to meet us there in an hour."

Johanna abruptly hung up her phone, rolling her eyes as she did so. "Fucking hell. Annie's worried about what she's going to wear."

"Why?" Katniss asked. "Who does she have to impress?"

Both Johanna and Madge gave her quizzical looks.

"What?"

"You don't see the way she looks at Finnick?" Madge asked. "Or how excited she was to see him the other day? Annie's got a _major _crush."

Now that Katniss thought about it, it did seem like Annie had been a little more aware of her appearance than usual. She was not one to worry much about looks, and so it had surprised Katniss when she had applied her makeup and done her hair for the ceremonies with a very careful hand.

Maybe Finnick Odair was the explanation.

The three girls quickly headed over to the Stratford Regional Station that would take them into the village. After about thirty minutes, they were back in the Village and on their way to Victory Park.

Once they made it back to the suite Clove, Annie and Johanna were sharing, a frazzled Annie opened the door almost immediately after they knocked.

"Come in quick! I don't know what I should do with my hair!"

"Don't be silly, Annie," Madge chided lightly. "Your hair always looks great."

"Yeah," Katniss said. "Don't even think about worrying about your outfit, either."

"You look smoking hot," Johanna added.

Annie blushed and bashfully thanked her friends before welcoming them inside.

"Thanks, but we should probably get back to our own room and get ready," Madge said. "We'll meet you there."

Annie waved goodbye to their friends as Johanna shut the door. Madge and Katniss returned to their suite down the hall, Madge eagerly opening their door and pulling Katniss inside.

"What's the rush?" Katniss asked, a smile on her face as Madge dragged her into their small bathroom.

"I want my hair to look good," Madge answered simply.

Katniss rolled her eyes. "What is it with you all and hair lately?"

Madge's cheeks got slightly pink. "Nothing. I just want it to look nice is all."

Katniss eyed her suspiciously. "I don't think Annie's the only one with a crush," Katniss said. Madge's pink cheeks turned red.

"Alright, alright. I think Gale is super hot. Just...don't tell anyone? Please?"

"Your secret's safe with me," Katniss promised, getting a big smile out of her friend.

They both changed their clothes and headed down to The Globe.

When they reached the small hangout spot, they both easily spotted Finnick, his tall frame and reddish hair giving him away. Katniss and Madge walked over to the small group, greeting everyone as they did so.

"Want a drink, Katniss?" a familiar voice asked. Peeta_._

Katniss raised an eyebrow. "I think alcohol is the last thing I need in my system, thanks," she replied.

Peeta laughed at her response. "I meant one of these," he said, holding up a large bottle of Powerade.

She smiled at him and accepted the bottle, taking a large drink from it. Katniss took another sip of the delicious drink.

"Thanks," she said to Peeta.

"No problem," he answered. "Want to sit over here and talk for a bit?"

Katniss shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

* * *

"What an amazing ceremony," Peeta said as he sat down on a small leather couch in the corner of the room.

Katniss sat next to him, taking another drink as she nodded her head.

"Yeah," she agreed. "It was like I said, I can't even explain it. I'm just so thrilled to be here."

Peeta was surprised to see that her eyes were sparkling and her face was glowing with excitement. Katniss didn't seem like the type to show her emotions very often-or ever, really. He didn't mind, of course. It just made her pretty features even more beautiful.

After a few moments of silence, Peeta decided to just spit out what he really wanted her to know.

"Look, Katniss," Peeta began. "I know we just met, and have only talked a couple of times, but I just...I just really, really want to get to know you."

Katniss looked at him warily.

"Why?" she asked.

"Why what?"

"Why do you want to get to know me?"

Peeta thought it over for a moment. Why _did _he want to get to know Katniss?

_She's beautiful, for one thing, _he thought. _She's a little cold, I suppose, but she's not bitchy like a lot of other women I've met. She's just got something..._

"You're different," he finally replied.

Katniss sniffed. "Different? I bet that's what you tell all the girls."

Peeta laughed. "I've never said that to any girl," he admitted. "I said it to you because it's true. You aren't like any other girl I've ever met. You're special."

She looked away from him for a moment, face screwed up in concentration.

"I just want to know everything about you," Peeta said quietly.

Katniss was silent for a minute before she spoke.

"I don't make friends easily. I like the color green. I have a love-hate relationship with gymnastics. And I love my little sister more than anyone else in the world."

Peeta was shocked at her words. Although he wanted to figure out the enigma that was Katniss Everdeen, he hadn't expected her to actually respond to his inquiry.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

She waved her hand in dismissal.

"What about you?" Katniss asked.

"What about me?"

"Tell me about yourself."

"Well...I like meeting new people. I like the color orange. I love art. I love to bake. I love my family, although we're not very close. I want to win not just for me, but for our whole country."

"You don't seem like the guy I thought you were," Katniss said after a moment.

"What kind of guy did you think I was?" Peeta asked, slightly nervous to hear her answer.

"I thought you were a self-centered prick," she replied honestly. "But you aren't. You're different."

Katniss shifted a little in her seat, her leg pressed up against Peeta's. He tried not to smile like a fool in happiness.

"I'll take that as a compliment," he said.

The pair fell silent once again, but this time the silence different. There was more tension than there had been before, and the quiet was turning awkward.

A little uncomfortably, Katniss broke the silence.

"So...when's your first race?"

"Sunday," Peeta replied. "I've got the 200 meter backstroke and 400 meter butterfly, so it's going to be a busy day."

"Yeah. We have qualifying Sunday too, it's going to be so crazy. I'm really nervous, to say the least."

"Don't worry about it," he reassured her. "Just go and have fun. You've worked your whole life for this. You can make it count."

A genuine smile crossed Katniss' face. "Thanks. That means a lot, coming from you."

_Coming from you? What is _that_ supposed to mean?_

Before Peeta could voice his thoughts, their conversation was interrupted for the second time that night, this time by Gale. Katniss and Peeta sprung apart, sitting as far away from one another as the couch would allow.

"Hey Catnip! Hey Peeta. What's up?"

Gale threw himself down into an armchair by the couch Katniss and Peeta were sitting on, taking a large drink from his Powerade.

"Just talking about competition," Peeta said casually, trying not to let his jealousy show.

"When's your first event, Catnip?" Gale asked.

"Sunday." she answered.

"You nervous?" he asked her.

"Yeah. I'm pretty...pretty worried, to be honest." Katniss replied.

"Well, you _are _quite pretty," he said with a wink. "But you don't need to worry. You'll nail it."

Katniss gave Gale one of her beautiful smiles. "Thanks," she said appreciatively.

"Anytime, lovely," he quipped back.

Peeta watched on, his jealousy growing by the minute. He wanted happiness for both of his friends, but that didn't mean that he was going to let Katniss fall into Gale's arms, either.

After almost five minutes of listening to Gale and Katniss flirt, Peeta couldn't stand it anymore.

"You know, I think I'm going to head out," he said, standing up from his seat on the comfortable couch.

"You can't leave yet, Peeta!" Gale objected. "We've only been here for half an hour!"

"I'm getting tired. Gotta rest up for Sunday," he said. "Good to see you, Katniss. See you tomorrow, Gale."

Peeta walked away from the couch, not wanting to stay at the club for another minute. He didn't need to stick around to see Katniss and Gale fawning over one another anymore.

"Peeta, wait!"

He kept walking out of the crowded club, not looking back.

* * *

A/N: Thank you all for your amazing response to this story. I REALLY appreciate your kind feedback, it means a lot!

In answer to a couple of questions, I'm planning on including all the gymnasts in various events, and there will definitely be other pairings aside from Katniss/Peeta.

I'll try to have the next chapter out soon. I'm starting school next week so updates will probably become more infrequent, but I'll do my best.

Thanks so much for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

July 29, 2012

"Ready. Set."

_BANG!_

Peeta dove into to the pool as quickly as he could and slipped underwater, using his long legs and arms to power himself forward.

_Don't stop, _he told himself. _Get ahead now so you don't have to worry later. _

He punched the wall and turned, trying his best to keep moving as quickly as possible.

Peeta swam the next two lengths of the pool with ease, letting a couple of the others burn out more energy early. As he hit the wall on his last turn of the heat, he surged forward, giving his all until he felt his fingers hit the pad behind his head.

Quickly coming up from underwater, Peeta pulled off his goggles and looked at the giant scoreboard on the other side of the Aquatic Centre, smiling as he saw the results.

_Thresh Granger- USA-1:55.59_

_Peeta Mellark- USA-1:57.74_

_Beetee Bell- AUS- 1:57.84_

It certainly wasn't his best, but Peeta didn't care. He was in, and that was what mattered.

He leaned over the divider to shake the hands of his competitors on either side of him, congratulating them both before getting out of the pool.

Peeta headed for the diving pool, wanting to warm down before he had to get ready for his next race.

After his muscles felt loose and relaxed, he got out of the small pool and walked back to the warm up area, intending to clear his head a little with some music.

Once he got there, he stopped by the table filled with drinks and grabbed a large water bottle. As he was leaving to go find his things, however, a familiar voice stopped him.

"Peeta?"

He whipped around to find none other than Katniss standing behind him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he cried, grabbing her wrist. "You could get into serious trouble!"

"I needed to talk to you!" she said, wrenching her arm away from Peeta's grasp. "And I won't get in trouble. Gale brought me down here."

His eyes hardened. "Gale brought you down here, huh?"

Katniss looked at him confusedly.

"Yeah. Why does that matter?"

Peeta ran his hand through his damp hair.

"Why does it matter? Katniss, he's not the guy you think he is. Gale is a total douche when it comes to girls."

"And you're not?" she countered angrily. "Do you even realize how immature you're being. I called you-I made Gale give me your number."

"He gave you my _phone number?_" Peeta cut in. Now he was twice as mad at Gale. He hated when his number was given out without his knowledge. The last thing Peeta needed was for the public to find out his phone number; it would be a nightmare.

Katniss glared at him and didn't answer.

"I sent you messages on Twitter and Facebook. I just wanted to know what was bothering you, what was bothering my _friend, _but if you're going to act like a five-year old, you can forget it."

Her words shocked Peeta. He had let his horrible jealousy overtake the budding friendship between himself and Katniss.

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "It's not an excuse, but I'm just...really jealous."

Katniss' eyebrows furrowed. "Jealous? Why?"

He laughed. "You seriously don't know?"

"No, I don't," she said honestly.

Peeta took a deep breath. "Katniss, I really, _really, _like you."

Her cheeks flushed.

"Sorry for yelling at you," she said quietly.

"No need," he said. "I deserved it."

Katniss smiled at Peeta and stepped closer to him, standing on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck.

Pleasantly surprised, he hugged her back, and

"I like you, too."

* * *

Katniss took a deep breath as she walked up to the vault runway. As luck would have it, she would be the first girl to compete for the United States in the competition. She normally wasn't nervous about vault, but today was different. Today meant everything.

She ran up the runway, gaining speed as she did so. Katniss did her roundoff and sprang off the horse, twisting high in the air and sticking a satisfactory landing, her right foot only a small distance apart from her left. Katniss raised her arms and smiled at the crowd before leaving the platform, the audiences' cheers ringing in her ears.

"Nice job, sweetheart."

Katniss smiled at the gruff voice that congratulated her as she left the platform.

"Thanks, Haymitch," she said, giving him a quick hug before returning to her teammates.

Katniss returned to where her team was waiting. She anxiously looked up at the scoreboard, hoping her marks would be good enough to help the team get on top early.

Finally, her score appeared.

_EVERDEEN, K. USA. 15.474_

Katniss smiled. Her vault's difficulty level was a whopping 6.5, and she was very pleased with her score.

"Nice one, Kat," Clove congratulated her friend.

"Yeah, you did good," Madge added.

"Thanks, guys," Katniss said. It made her feel good to know there were people wanting her to succeed and perform well.

Soon it was Johanna's turn to perform her vault. Katniss watched her friend take off down the runway and twirl in the air, landing with only one step forward on the mat.

Everyone cheered for Johanna, proud of her solid landing. She quickly came down the platform and talked to her coach for a moment before returning to the small group.

"Nice one, Jo!" Clove said.

"Good job," Annie told her.

"You were awesome up there." Katniss congratulated.

Johanna smiled at her friends' kind words. "Thanks," she said, a rare

After her score had been posted- a 15.501- it was Madge's turn to take the vault.

This was her best event, and the team was confident that she would do well.

Madge took her place at the beginning of the runway, taking a deep breath before starting down it. She sprang onto the horse and spun around in the air, landing effortlessly on the mat with a huge smile.

The crowd erupted with ear-splitting cheers, all the supporters of the United States impressed and proud of her stellar performance.

"Madge, that was amazing!" Katniss congratulated her friend when she reached their group.

"Amazing? That was perfect!" Johanna cried.

The girls all celebrated Madge's performance and cheered loudly when her score was posted.

_UNDERSEE, M. USA. 16.023_

More loud cheers came from the crowd at her score, giving Madge and the others a big boost of confidence.

"Alright girls, don't get too excited, we've still got three events."

Katniss smiled at the sound of the team coach, Effie Trinket. She'd recognize the shrill and bossy tone anywhere.

"Yes ma'am," Clove said somewhat sarcastically.

Effie gave her a sharp look.

"You girls can't afford to slack off now. This is it. Now, be respectful and watch the last girls to go."

The whole team turned their attention back to the vault, watching one of Russia's most talented gymnasts, Glimmer Gorshkova.

Glimmer ran up the runway and sprang off the horse, her twists impressive and fluid. She stuck the landing without a step out-of-place, raising her arms to the judges and crowd with a bright smile before heading over to her coach and teammates.

Katniss clapped for her competitor, but did so slightly reluctantly. She and Glimmer hadn't been on the greatest terms since the 2011 worlds (or ever, really) when Katniss took the gold in the all-around and Glimmer received the silver.

Now, however, Katniss knew that she was going to have to step up her game. Even though they were only competing in the qualification round, this was what would determine the rest of the competition for the rest of the games. Katniss wanted to win gold in the all-around again, and wasn't about to let Glimmer get in her way.

Once the rest of the Russian team had completed their vaults, the United States were barely leading, a half of a point ahead of the Russians and two points ahead of Romania.

"Come, girls! Uneven bars are next!"

The girls followed Effie towards the uneven bars, the momentary happiness from their great scores on vault turning into adrenaline.

_Wait. Peeta? Where did that come from?_

Katniss shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. She knew she liked him, he knew she liked him, but they hardly knew each other.

_I never should have told him that I like him, _she thought. _It's only going to bring about trouble. I need to focus. _

Pushing away all of her thoughts of Peeta, Katniss turned her attention back to the competition, trying to quell the feelings of nervousness in her stomach.

She watched Annie and Madge fly on the bars with impressive dexterity, both girls receiving good scores to keep Team USA in the lead.

Katniss took a deep breath as she approached the bars. The uneven bars had always been her weakest event, and after she'd damaged her leg falling on them in 2009, they were especially daunting.

She'd pushed through then. She just had to push through now.

Katniss jogged up to the springboard and jumped onto the top bar, swinging her legs high in the air and bouncing from one bar to the next.

When she finished her routine, she twirled high in the air and landed cleanly once again, her feet only slightly apart.

The crowd cheered and applauded her performance, and Katniss smiled, knowing it was one of her best routines since Worlds.

She ran down to see Haymitch again, who hugged her in a rare display of affection for his oldest student.

They both watched in anticipation for her score, and relief washed over both of them when the score was finally posted.

_EVERDEEN, K. USA. 15.287_

Soon after Katniss had finished, the rest of the competitors had also taken their turns and received their scores. The United States was in the lead by a larger margin- two points ahead of the Russian team and five ahead of Romania.

However, the girls all knew that their work was far from done. They still had beam and floor to complete, and there was also the matter of qualifying for the all-around competition.

The beam routine passed quickly and easily, girls from each country performing well. By the time Katniss and her teammates were to take their turn, they were faced with incredibly fierce competition.

Johanna was first up on beam, and as her team's strongest performer on this apparatus, she had to do well.

The girls on the floor nervously watched her as she started her routine, beginning her series of complicated twists and flips. She put on a real show, smiling in all the right places. Johanna flipped off of the beam and landed without a toe out of line, her smile genuine this time.

Katniss went next, her routine also going off without a hitch. Although she lacked the showy smiles and charm that Johanna displayed, her technique was so similar to the old world style of gymnastics that the judges tended to favor.

Clove came after her, hoping to repeat what her teammates had just accomplished.

The spritely girl sprang onto the beam and started her routine, getting into a comfortable rhythm with her jumps and flips.

As she made her final flip, Clove's right leg gave way from under her, and her face contorted in pain. She tried to keep a smile on her face as she finished her routine, but it was easy to see that she was hurt.

Clove's coach, Brutus, ran over to her, picking up and carrying her down to where the medic was waiting to check her over.

The rest of the girls tried to clamor around their teammate to see what was going on, but Effie held them back.

"We mustn't get in the way, girls," she reprimanded. "Clove will be fine. We must move quickly. There's still one event left."

All of the girls reluctantly left Clove behind with the medic, taking off towards the floor apparatus, where they would have to give their all. They were still in a qualifying spot for team finals, but they needed to turn up the heat for the all-around.

Play resumed quickly after Clove's fall. Team USA had to go first, and so they had to push past the emotion and give everything they had.

Madge went first, tumbling and leaping to the beat of her music, showing off impressive dexterity.

After her skillful routine, Johanna followed. Once again, she turned on the charm and received many cheers and support from the crowd.

Katniss was happy for her two friends, but she was also nervous. Floor was her best event, but she knew she needed a little extra boost to secure her spot in the all-around competition.

She walked up to the mat and got into position, a small smile on her face. Katniss cleared her mind as the music started to play, letting her mind become immersed in gymnastics.

Katniss gave it her all, her form fluid and her moves effortless. She virtually performed without error, and was all smiles as she finished.

After the rest of the competitors had finished their routines, the final team scores were posted. Russia had overtaken the United States for top qualifying position. Team USA came next, closely followed by the strong teams of China and Romania.

The judges took a little longer to post the results of the all-around competition, leaving all the girls waiting nervously.

_I want to get in, _Katniss thought, _but if I don't, at least I've got another chance to prove myself with team finals._

Katniss' mouth dropped open when she saw the final scores.

_EVERDEEN, K. USA. 57.354_

_MASON, J. USA. 56.987_

_UNDERSEE, M. USA. 55.325_

Katniss couldn't believe what she was seeing. She'd qualified for the all-around competition.

A wave of emotion swept over her as she realized what this meant. The elusive Olympic all-around title could belong to her.

Katniss couldn't hold back her tears as she hugged Johanna.

"Can you believe this?" Johanna said. "We made it. _We made it!_"

After the two of them broke apart, Haymitch congratulated his gymnast.

"I knew you had it in you, sweetheart," he told her, his voice thick with emotion. Katniss didn't reply and just hugged him, silently thanking him for everything.

The rest of the girls congratulated Johanna and Katniss. Madge looked slightly hurt as she did so, having just missed out on the competition.

"I'm so happy for you," Madge whispered in Katniss' ear as they shared a hug.

"Madge, I'm"

"Don't, Kat. Enjoy this."

As soon as Madge had spoken and broken their hug, reporters began to bombard Katniss with questions.

"Katniss, can you tell us what it feels like to finally be in the all-around?"

"How are you taking all of this in?"

"What's it like to know you have to face off against your teammate Johanna Mason for the gold?"

"Tell us about Madge Undersee- how's it feel to know you and Johanna knocked her out?"

"Alright, alright, let the girl breathe!"

Haymitch's voice abruptly silenced the reporters.

"One at a time's fine," he said, "Just don't be so damn pushy."

Reporters kept the girls behind for almost twenty minutes doing post-competition interviews and took an inordinate amount of pictures of the finalists.

When the interviews were finally over, Haymitch pulled Katniss aside and clapped her on the back.

"You did good, sweetheart. You did _real _good."

* * *

"Ready. Set."

_BANG!_

Peeta dove into the pool for the umpteenth time that night, once again trying to get ahead of his competitors early to ensure his success.

He'd received a bronze medal about an hour before this race in the 200 meter backstroke, and he intended to do better in this one, the 400 meter freestyle.

As Peeta completed the first length, he tried to remind himself to stay calm.

_You can win if you keep your pace steady. Just swim. Don't think too much._

One of Peeta's biggest challenges as a swimmer was keeping his mind free of worry. Ever the perfectionist, it was a real struggle for Peeta to let things be less than flawless, and he tended to channel that into his swimming, which sometimes hurt him instead of giving him an advantage.

He was approaching his fourth length now. Peeta made a quick turn, hoping to stay in close contention for the last few lengths.

By his sixth length, Peeta was neck in neck with Marvel Rivers of Australia, both men now trying to power ahead of one another.

_This is it, _Peeta thought to himself. _Make it count._

As the swimmers started down the home stretch, they could hear the roar of the crowd as they swam. It gave Peeta an extra boost to speed forward, and he gave it everything he had until he hit the wall.

Peeta looked up at the scoreboard as soon as he could get his goggles off, hoping to see his name at the top of the list.

_RIVERS, M. AUS. 4:08.96_

_MELLARK, P. USA. 4:08.94_

_RUSSEL, D. GBR. 4:09.06_

Peeta let out a sigh of frustration. Once again, he'd barely missed the gold.

He shook hands with his competitors on his left and right sides, getting out of the pool. Once he was out, he met up with his coach, Jack Boggs.

They shared a quick hug, and Boggs told him to try to enjoy the moment, even though he was still disappointed.

Peeta knew that he should feel proud of his accomplishment, and he was thankful that he had received a medal. However, that didn't make it any easier to realize that the gold was just out of reach.

He congratulated both Marvel and Darius, trying his best to sound upbeat. Although he was upset with his performance, he knew that the other swimmers deserved congratulations as well.

Once Peeta had changed into his gray jacket, black pants, and tennis shoes that the American team sported on the medal stand, he was ushered over to where the ceremony would take place. His race had been the last of the evening, and so they would be presented with their medals promptly.

Marvel, Peeta, and Darius took their places on the podium. Darius was first to receive his medal and bouquet of flowers. Peeta was next, and bent down to receive his medal. The man put it around his neck and handed him his flowers, shaking his hand. Marvel was next, and once he had received his gold medal, the Australian anthem began to play.

Peeta listened to the music, a small smile on his face. He was proud that he'd made it onto the podium, but it was still hard not to hear the Star Spangled Banner being played throughout the Aquatic Centre.

Shortly after the anthem had finished, Peeta met up with his coach and family, following them and his escort out of the building.

When Peeta arrived back to his room in the Olympic village almost an hour later, he was exhausted. He took a shower and changed into his pajamas, eager to get some rest.

Deciding to quickly type out a message to his fans on Twitter, he pulled his phone out of his duffel bag. Before he could open the application, though, a flood of text messages stopped him.

The messages were all from his friends and family, wishing him well and congratulating him on his medals he'd won so far. However, one message in particular stood out to him.

_Just heard the news, congratulations, you deserve this. See you soon. K xox_

Peeta didn't know who the message could be from. He'd never seen the number before, and didn't know how someone could get his phone number-he kept it tightly under wraps.

Then it hit him. Katniss had sent him the message. Gale had given her his number.

He switched his phone off and got into bed, making a mental note to thank Gale for giving Katniss his number after all.

* * *

A/N: Words can't describe the thanks I have for your feedback. I am so thankful to have such kind readers. Thank you so much, it really helps to hear your reception to my work!

Sorry this took me so long. School just started, and I'm already busy. I'm working on this in my spare time though, and I'm hoping to get the next chapter up by next weekend.

Thanks so much for continuing to stay interested in my story. Your support means the world.


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